‘Not Giving Up isnt just a saying, nor will sharing this over and over ever do anything to actually help a husband and wife work towards strengthening their marriage and becoming closer to one another. Just like Love, Marriage should also be more of an action verb than merely a concept. Are posting good Christian encouragements about love and marriage enough actual work to qualify as a verb-like action? Is this where your efforts on making your marriage a priority find their end, or do you put them into practice? This is probably one of the most glossed over concepts for married couples and especially so for couples who call themselves Christian, yet dont put into practice what they post all over their Facebook walls, t-shirts, and bumper stickers. Most all of us know the coming quote or have heard this over and over, and many of us either had it read or read it ourselves at our weddings, and countless others even have it posted or hung somewhere in our own houses. Do you treat them as mere words, or as the actual inspired writings from God on how to live a successful Christian married life? So what words could possibly hold so much wisdom? *** (1 Corinthians Chapter 13) “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.“ *** We post and re-post so many useless things here in the Social Media cloud, but tend to avoid the harder stuff... the stuff that makes you re-evaluate your words and actions and that offers wisdom and support for refusing to give up on each other. We especially don’t want to post something that someone might actually ‘Dislike.’ Heaven forbid that your daily post isn’t the laugh riot of all your internet friends or something that is tangible, useful, and more likely to influence lives then to criticize them. Take a stand for marriage - for YOUR marriage and share something that could ultimately bring more love, joy, happiness and blessings than could any other worldly things combined in your life. With this in mind, I will be sharing some thoughts over the coming weeks from renowned Christian marriage Blogger, Jennifer Smith of the Unveiled Wife. She shares her raw feelings on her own marriage – both the struggles and the triumphs, and unveils herself to her readers so that they can learn from her real experiences in being a better, more Christian spouse. https://facebook/unveiledwife unveiledwife/ What are your priorities in life and where does your spouse and your marriage rate in that list? (Hint, if you quit reading already, or didn’t even get started – then you answered your own question.) Do you give it only the tiniest bits of attention and bare-boned maintenance? So if you do that, and then turn all your efforts and attention to the rest of your all-too-busy day, then why do you blankly wonder why your relationship isnt as satisfying, blessed, or as happy as you want it to be at the end of the day? -Who of you didnt see a cat video or Obama slam and still started reading this? -Who saw that it may take some real effort on your part and gave up already? -Will posting wonderful Christian quotes on your page magically fix your marriage issues or are you prepared to actually make it a PRIORITY and DO something to make it better? -Is your marriage worth working for, or are your inactions and refusal to acknowledge your spousal shortcomings preventing you from being the best spouse you can be? Let’s see how many will take this journey with me and share these experiences to see if we can make our marriages the better off for having committing to this. Be warned though, there arent any political put-downs or cartoons here, no criticisms of the government or photo-shopped creations which are meant to shame, tear-down, gossip about or discredit others. This alone will prevent MANY of YOU so-called Facebook Christians from ever participating in something so Biblically inspirational and helpful, much less sharing it where others might actually SEE it! Are you the best example of a Christian that you can be? If you were the only Christian that someone ever met, what would they come away with after 5 minutes of either talking with you or even worse – after reading your FB Wall? When you are busy posting and sharing the gossipy work of Satan all over your page and succumbing to the never-ending peer-pressures of the social media bandwagon, then you are too entrenched in the filth of this world to be of any Heavenly good to anyone who really does follow the teachings of the Christ who YOU claim so LOUDLY to follow and believe in. If even 1 marriage improves from all of this, EVEN IF IT IS NOT YOUR OWN, then wasnt it worth it? This is not posted from on high or from some false sense of my own self-righteousness or in any boastful manner. It is merely presented by one sinner for the benefit of the rest of you sinners who wish to make today a turning point in their marriages... not just because they may be bad – but so that they can ALL be better! (1 Timothy 1:12-17) “Thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” - John Valentine - AKA - Holy Harley > Husband-In-Training ✞ Chaplain–At-Large ✞ ******** P.S. - What are you willing to sacrifice in order to make gains in the areas of your life or marriage that you say are your priorities? Sorry - did someone forget to tell you that Christianity is a faith based on sacrifice and grace? If you are still posting about how much Jesus loves all of us but surround those same posts with all of your What have you done for ME lately kind of crap.... or by posting how all Muslims should die or how all immigrants should be deported or the members of our government harmed or even killed, etc... then whos ideals are you really sharing? Do you reflect the Word of Jesus who would AND DID give up everything He had for the sake of ALL others - even those who spat in His face or mocked & beat Him for doing so, or of your own warped and self-entitled mind? Warning: Love, Marriage and Faith are not popular subjects and will not garner the hundreds of likes and shares that you have come to adore from your mindless social masses, especially with elections on our horizon.. If this is what you are after – then keep on being the hypocrite you are known to be by continuing to post and share only the things of this world which tear down everyone around you rather than embracing the teachings that can instead, build them and your marriage back up. I know this may be radical thinking for some of you…. But don’t take it from me. One glance at your FB Wall….. does it reflect this? (John 13:34-35) “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Posted on: Fri, 14 Nov 2014 22:59:38 +0000
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